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In anurans, visual prey information is filtered in the retina and processed in interacting pretectal and tectal retinal projection fields. Neuropeptide Y is involved in pretecto-tectal inhibition. Information related to prey and its location in space is transmitted to the bulbar/spinal motor pattern generating systems by ensembles of efferent tectal and tegmental neurons. This basic stimulus-response (S-R) mediating circuit is influenced by forebrain loops. It is suggested that ventral striatum and lateral thalamic nucleus participate in a loop responsible for gating S-R. The hippocampal pallium modifies S-R via the anterior thalamus with regard to previous experience. Dopaminergic modulation influences prey-catching strategies.

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A topic of interdisciplinary research in neurobiology and neuroinformatics concerns visual pattern recognition by neuronal networks. Drawing on quantitative studies of visual releasers of prey catching in toads, it can be shown that moving objects are classified based on an evaluation of certain configurational features. The information regarding these features is provided in the manner of parallel distributed processing within a retino-pretectal-tectal interacting network. This processing structure is, to a considerable extent, modifiable and adaptive. Associative and nonassociative learning processes take advantage of loop operations involving various forebrain structures. An artificial neuronal net, applying some principles of the toad's visual system, is tested to promote the dialogue between neurobiology and engineering.